The city recognized Medal of Honor recipients Tuesday at the former Marine Corps Air Station Ewa in Kalaeloa.

It was home base for 11 Marine pilots that received the Medal of Honor for their service in World War II.  Four of them were killed on Dec. 7, 1941.

Hershel "Woody" Williams is one of the 54 living Medal of Honor recipients in Hawaii this week for a convention.  There are only 81 living Medal of Honor recipients in the world.

"My whole life changed and I'd become a public figure," said Williams.  "As a role model, I didn't just represent me, and this medal.  I represented all those Marines."

This former airfield was the birthplace of Marine aviation in the Pacific.